The Yankee manager, who survived his own bout with the disease last year, said the mayor must keep his thoughts strong and not think about the negatives.

“It’s frightening – but the information opens it up for you and makes you realize that with early detection you can live a normal life,” Torre said.

The Bombers’ chief said he even traded some gallows humor with the mayor about their respective health problems.

“I told him I was a little jealous because his cancer headlines were bigger than my cancer headlines,” the manager quipped.

At a press conference at Yankee Stadium, Torre revealed he’d had an emotional phone conversation with the mayor yesterday in which he described his own experiences with the illness.

Torre learned he had prostate cancer in March 1999 after a blood test during a routine physical. Less than two weeks later, he underwent surgery to have his prostate removed and had radiation therapy.

His cancer is now in remission.

“I think what’s going on in the mayor’s head right now is the unknown,” Torre said.

“It scares you to death. It’s like that black hole, you just figure there’s this bottomless pit you go into.”

He said he told Giuliani that the moment the diagnosis is revealed is the worst.

“When you hear the word ‘cancer,’ it’s frightening. But cancer is no longer a death sentence,” Torre said.

Asked whether he believes the mayor should stay in the Senate race or drop out, Torre – who returned to the Yankee bench last season after his own cancer scare – said Giuliani must make that decision alone.

“First of all, he has to do what’s good for his health. I think that’s what comes first, and I’m sure the people of New York understand that, whether you are for him or against him,” Torre explained.

John Cardinal O’Connor, who is fighting back from a debilitating illness himself, also is offering prayers of support for the mayor.

“The cardinal is continuing to pray for Mayor Giuliani and celebrated Mass for him shortly after hearing the news of Mayor Giuliani’s illness,” said Joseph Zwilling, the cardinal’s spokesman.

O’Connor, 80, underwent brain surgery last summer to remove a small tumor.